The hospital ‘superbug’: social representations of MRSA

The so-called ‘hospital superbug’ methcillin resistant staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) became a topic of media and political concern from the middle of the 1990’s. It was increasingly politicised in the period leading up to the British General Election of 2005. This study examines the meanings of MRSA that circulate in Britain by analysing newspaper coverage of the disease over a ten year period. It utilises social representations theory and contextualises MRSA within existing research on representations of emerging infectious diseases (EIDs). A key pattern in the representation of EIDs is to externalise the threat they pose by linking the origin, risk and blame to ‘the other’ of those who represent them. In this light the study investigates who and what MRSA is associated with and the impact that these associations have on levels of alarm and blame. Key findings are that MRSA is represented as a potentially lethal ‘superbug’, marking the end of a ‘golden age of medicine’ in which the story of the discovery of antibiotics has played such a key role. Furthermore, MRSA is constructed around an “it could be you / me” set of assumptions by way of the plethora of human interest stories that dominate the coverage. Finally, the blame for MRSA focuses not on its genesis, but rather on why it spreads. This is attributed to poor hygiene in hospitals, which is ultimately caused by mismanagement of the National Health Service and erosion of the authority and morality symbolised by the ‘matron’ role. This constellation of meanings speaks to a somewhat different pattern of response to MRSA when compared to many past EIDs

Chapter In Search of Sympathy

In this essay, I place in historical context the three themes identified as important for the image of nursing in the Nursing Mirror competition, using nursing textbooks, diaries, memoirs, institutional and committee records and oral histories of nurses who trained in the 1920s and 1930s, largely from the Royal College of Nursing Archive. I begin with “human sympathy,” a trait newly emphasized in nursing around the turn of the twentieth century (Chaney, 2020). As I have shown elsewhere, there were definite class overtones to this new framing of nursing care. The emphasis on “finer” feelings such as sympathy was linked to explicit efforts by some reformers—such as Ethel Bedford Fenwick—to turn nursing into a middle-class profession (Rafferty, 1993; Brooks, 2001). The professional status of nursing in Britain was even newer, solidified by the passing of the Nurses Registration Act in December 1919. I turn next, then, to “professional capacity.” The view of professional identity that followed the introduction of registration was heavily shaped by First World War nursing. As well as the hierarchical structure of military discipline, the Edith Cavell myth popularized the view that not to show strong emotion was the hallmark of the modern, professional nurse. Finally, I examine the third theme outlined by the Nursing Mirror—beauty of line—in relation to the expectations around femininity and appearance in the interwar period. The good nurse was also a good woman, something visible in both her appearance and her actions

Sleep Disruptions within the Hospital

The circadian rhythm is a complex and interwoven system within each human being that creates an internal clock each day. However, patients in all hospital settings continue to have their sleep disrupted by many factors. Seep being disrupted in the hospital patients can develop serious complications. To this day, the issues causing have not been adequately assessed and therapeutically intervened with consistency within nursing practice. Using the Whittemore and Knalf Framework, this integrative review will examine the literature on aspects of inpatient care that contribute to circadian disruptions within hospitals. By doing so, the research can be built upon with further research to raise awareness and outline new nursing recommendations for better practices moving forward

Hutcheson Medical Center: Focusing on Personal Interactions

Outlines elements of a strategy for high patient satisfaction focused on patient-staff interactions and patients' needs, including a culture of customer service, shared governance, better data collection, more visible leaders, and evidence-based practice

Barnes Hospital Record

https://digitalcommons.wustl.edu/bjc_barnes_record/1047/thumbnail.jp

Madness in Southern China : illness as metaphor in Su Tong\u27s The tale of the siskins and Madwoman on the bridge

In Su Tong’s novels, the term madness is more than a medical term and it carries metaphorical meanings. In The Tale of the Siskins and “Madwoman on the Bridge,” Su Tong uses madness as a metaphor to challenge the dichotomy between normality and abnormality, and draws an analogy between mental hospitals and contemporary society. Unlike Yu Hua’s 余華 (1960-) novels, which intertwine sanguinary violence with madness, Su Tong depicts madness mainly to unveil the absurdity of the Mahogany Street. This paper analyses the use of patients’ illnesses in mental hospitals as metaphors in these two stories. In “Madwoman on the Bridge,” Su Tong displaces the role of doctors and madmen. In The Tale of the Siskins, Su Tong dismantles the clear-cut distinction between normality and abnormality. By reversing the two signifying concepts of normality and abnormality, Su Tong leads us to re-assess a variety of conventions, customs and acts we deem reasonable and legitimate in contemporary society

Barnes Hospital Record

https://digitalcommons.wustl.edu/bjc_barnes_record/1186/thumbnail.jp

Barnes Hospital Record

https://digitalcommons.wustl.edu/bjc_barnes_record/1190/thumbnail.jp

Linfieldpdx, 2017

Linfieldpdx, an annual newsletter for Linfield College\u27s nursing and health sciences alumni and friends, features stories about alumni, the campus, and programs. Included in this issue: notes from the deans men in nursing paying it forward honoring excellenc